Here at the Podium, we all know that Bill and his folks down in Austin can build one heck of a guitar. His OM guitars are light, responsive, world-class fingerstyle instruments. The Collings dreadnoughts are cannons - you'll never have to worry about the banjo player at a bluegrass jam again. The little boxes - 00s - are a first rate blues and ragtime guitars…or whatever else you try to ply out of them. All in all, fit and finish are second to none and we are constantly amazed by the consistency of build and tone that these instruments exhibit.
But what if they're missing a soundhole?
In the world of electric guitars, those venerable builders from California and Nashville (by way of Kalamazoo, many moons ago) set the benchmark for electric guitars the same way the folks in Nazareth, PA did for flat top acoustics. And like they did with their acoustic line, Collings raises the bar with their recent foray into the world of high quality, boutique electric guitars.
The "290" is Collings answer to the beautiful simplicity of a single cutaway, two pickup instrument well suited for electric blues, country, and rock-and-roll of any era. Featuring a solid mahogany body with 22 fret unbound set-neck, beautiful high-gloss nitrocellulose lacquer finish, and custom P90-style pickups by Jason Lollar, this guitar can provide rich clean tones yet break up a nice tube amp with creamy, thick natural overdrive. The neck is fast and responsive, and like all Collings guitars, the fretwork is flawless and jewel-like. Using the volume and tone controls and careful picking, you can coax bell-like clean tones from an amp that is already overdriven keeping the tone and dynamics right where they should be - at your fingertips. Simple as it might be, the magic that can happen with a solid mahogany guitar and P90s is something that can't be underestimated.
In a market full of clones and copies, this guitar borrows proudly from a rich tradition, but makes its own mark. The contoured body is comfortable, the larger-than-expected lower bout is very balanced, and the weight - just over 7 lbs. - is solid without being unwieldy. This is also one of the most resonant set-neck solidbody guitars I've ever played. An unplugged strum, just out of the case, put a smile on my face.
A great guitar, from a great builder, with top of the line hardware and Lollar pickups -with tone for days…
What more could you ask for?
Features:
- Solid mahogany body
- High gloss lacquer finish
- Custom P90-style pickups by Jason Lollar
- Tone-Pro bridge and tailpiece ?
- Black or amber top hat volume/tone knobs
- 22-fret unbound mahogany neck
- East Indian rosewood fingerboard
- 24 7/8" Scale Length
For more information, call us toll free at 1-866-331-8893 or email sales@thepodium.com.
| Model: |
290-CRIMSON |
| Manufacturer: |
Collings |
